I turned my house into a care home

Birth trauma spurred Audrey to help other parents

- KATE SKELTON

One minute, Audrey Williams Joseph was admiring her perfect baby at her 20-week scan.

Three days later, she was rushed to hospital in labour.

"Non-viable delivery. Incompatible with life. A miscarriage," was the medical verdict.

Audrey was told that her son Israel, born four weeks before the legal abortion limit of 24 weeks, was extremely unlikely to survive.

She recalls: "One minute everything was perfect and the next, I'd given birth and my world fell apart.

"I remember the doctors standing there, shaking their heads.

"I was waiting to hear, "Congratulations, you have a baby boy', or just hear him cry. Instead, my world was completely shattered. He was small enough to fit in my hand.

"The doctor explained that I had given birth four weeks below the life viability threshold and that all I could do was wait for him to pass away." Israel had brain damage and medics thought he would only survive for a few hours. But 30 years later, he is living happily in supported accommodation and enjoys cooking and shopping.

The struggle to bring Israel up as a single mum inspired Audrey to turn her own house into a care home for others with special needs.